Ross chases history at Hartlepool

The Scottish full-back is targeting a first ever FA Cup fifth-round appearance for Hartlepool, but he could return north in the summer. By Douglas Alexander

IN the mosaic of a football club’s history, individual players can be fragments of the overall image. Jack Ross may last only one season with Hartlepool but could still ensure his own splinter of posterity this Saturday. Victory over Brentford in a fourth-round replay will give the club a place in the FA Cup’s fifth round for the first time in their 97-year existence.

A glamour tie away to Southampton will catch the eye but is a small part of the bigger picture for Hartlepool, who are still very much in the frame for promotion to the Championship next season. They have never been so high.

This happy spell in their history coincides with a strong Scottish influence. The club is owned by the Aberdeen-based firm Increased Oil Recovery and managed by Neale Cooper. The first-choice team includes Ross, formerly of Clyde, at right-back and Hugh Robertson, once of Aberdeen